Forgetting hurts
by azebra117
Summary: AU, Set right after Jack comes back from his paradox year with the Doctor but before Captain John Hart comes. Just an idea I had, Rated T for swearing and cuz later there might be stuff but I don't know yet. FWI: I live in America so sorry if I get any slang wrong of if I have them play a game that's not very custom there. If it's a game just assume Jack taught it to them
1. Chapter 1

**Hello! This is a story about Torchwood (obviously) it's set right after Jack comes back from his paradox year with the Doctor. Captain John Hart has not come yet. Never really happened just an idea I wanted to write. Hope you enjoy!**

"Left!" Toshiko was watching the tracking device

"Another left, through the field, it'll be bumpy but quicker. Then to the department store, that's where they're headed" Ianto told Owen

"You sure?" Owen asked skeptically from the drivers seat

"Yes. Now go!" Owen barreled through the field

"How did you know that?" Jack asked

"Seemed logical, sir. Fields empty in the winter anyway, the department store is the only big place to go" Ianto smiled as the SUV jerked to a stop

"Go, go, go!" Gwen jumped out of the car and they all followed her into the department store.

"Gwen, Owen and Toshiko go to the left. Ianto and I will go right. Now move!" Jack split off the side and Ianto followed, after shooting the elevator commands

"The point of that?" Jack asked while running up the stairs

"Well sir, now they can't escape by elevator," Ianto replied

"Think of everything why don't you," Jack muttered

"Thanks sir, I will," Ianto pulled the fire alarm and immediately janitors burst out of the doors and ran downstairs. Jack watched one run by and then shook his head and kept going

"Wouldn't have been crowded at night but helpful to have the civilians out of the was sir,"

"Tosh, where are they headed?" Jack asked through the comm.

"One floor above you, two above us. They're the only two still going up, others are all headed down," came her reply

"Why so slow?" Jack teased

"Owen here twisted his ankle," Gwen muttered

"Out before it begins, eh Owen?" Jack laughed

"Not my bloody fault, ruddy janitors running around. Who pulled the alarm anyway?" Owen snapped

"Sorry, I didn't want them getting in the way" Ianto apologized

"At least someone's thinking" Gwen said

"So Tosh, they stopped yet? Jack asked

"Not yet, seems like they're headed to the roof,"

"No, wait something's not right…" Ianto paused and frowned

"Ianto, come on," Jack looked back

"Sorry sir, but something doesn't make sense,"

"Oh and what's that, wonder boy?" Owen laughed sarcastically

"Let him talk." Jack commanded

"Tosh how are we tracking them?" Ianto asked

"Heat signals and CCTV," she replied

"Have we gotten any clear pictures of their faces recently?"

"Uh… no. No pictures of faces actually,"

"Shit" Ianto whispered

"What?" Jack asked

"There were way too many janitors for this time of night,"

"Guys back down! We've been tricked!" Jack shot pass Ianto and speed down the stairs

"Great. Why can't we use the elevators?" Owen complained. Ianto bowed his head and kept running

"Never mind that, it would take longer anyway. Tosh are there any near us?" Jack asked quickly

"One level down, the picture shows he has a gun. Picture's gone." Jack burst through the door and pointed his gun at the man standing in front of them

"Hands over head and up against the wall." Jack ordered. The man did as he was told and he stood with his back to the door of the lift.

"Where are the others?" Jack asked. "Where!" he yelled

"In such a hurry you left the car running didn't you. All the files waiting to be taken," the man smiled "bye." He stepped back into the open doors of the lift but instead of his feet touching ground he fell down the cute all the way to the bottom.

"I guess it was useful for something after all," Ianto smiled

"Owen did you leave the car running?" Jack rushed back to the stairs

"Uh, maybe. Possibly… probably… yeah,"

"Now we're in trouble," Jack whispered and vaulted down the stairs five at a time

"Better get to the car," Ianto told the others. When they reached the ground floor Ianto paused before opening the door

"But sir, what if they fire when it opens?" He asked

"Then let the immortal man go first," Jack pushed passed Ianto and stepped into the open.

"Come on out!" Jack yelled and Ianto slid out behind him. "Don't be shy!" A man in a janitor suit walked out from behind the SUV. "Here we go,"

"You will not get us." The man told them

"'Us?' There's only one of you," Jack laughed. But as he laughed the man split into two people, and the two people split again, and they kept splitting, making more copies of themselves.

"Splitting aliens, great. Now all we need is the rest of the team and we'll be even." Ianto murmured

"What is it with you and not listening to us! We called you on comm. for ages!" Gwen burst through the door and Ianto turned around. He barely had time to smile before hearing a loud band and being shoved to the ground. Ianto looked up to se Jack pulling a dart from his arm and smiling crazily

"Well that's… interesting," Jack whispered before falling to the ground


	2. Chapter 2

**Hello! So sometimes when animals are scared people place their hands around their eyes so they can only look forward, sometimes when people are having panic attacks they do that as well. Thank you for reading my story! Here's the next part! Enjoy!**

"Well that's… interesting," Jack whispered before falling to the ground, he blinked a few times before shaking his head like a dog getting out of water. The aliens started shooting at them, this time real bullets, and the team was outmatched without their leader. Ianto gasped as a bullet grazed his arm, slowly he raised his gun and shot the original alien. The clones disappeared and the first alien fell to the ground, dead.

"Jack, Jack are you ok?" Gwen was crouched by Jack's side.

"Yeah, yeah I'm fine. The stars are so bright tonight… they're so pretty," Jack laughed crazily. "I've been to some of those stars, I would say half to impress you but half would be a trillion, billion, billion, billion, billion, billion…" he kept going as Owen took his pulse, "billion, billion, billion stars. And I haven't been to that many." Jack giggled, "I bet the Doctor has though. He's probably been to half of them, but that's a stretch, even for the him, oh Doctor. "Jack giggled again.

"Vikatin" Tosh interrupted Jack, "the dart held major amount of Vikatin. The stuff they use to make you feel no pain, makes you go a bit…" Tosh looked at Jack who was now laughing at the clouds, "Loopy."

"Ok. Lets get in the van. I'll drive, Owen sit passenger, Tosh and Ianto you can keep him in the back. Ok?" Gwen started for the van and Tosh helped Ianto carry Jack.

"I don't think this will work. It was hard enough when one of us wasn't loopy," Tosh muttered. As they neared the door Jack had a fit.

"No! Won't! Won't! I don't like the seat! No!" he sounded like a two year old.

"Put him in the far back," Gwen ordered from the front.

"Alone? Won't he… do something?" Ianto questioned. Gwen turned around and looked at him.

"Fine. Ianto, keep Jack company." Gwen climbed back into the van and Ianto carried Jack into the back. The doors shut and they started off. Ianto kneeled on the floor with Jack's head in his lap and holding hands.

"It's dark," Jack sighed, it was but there was enough light to see.

"Sure it is," Ianto replied. They stayed silent for a moment before Jack said worriedly.

"Is that blood?"

"What? Oh, yes sir. A bullet grazed my arm-" Ianto started to explain.

"No! No blood! Why is it always blood! Cold, dead people with blood all over them! Lying on the ground completely dead and still. Friends, family, soldiers, everyone's dead! Over the trenches into the bloodbath. Just dying, over and over, they keep dying and never stop! Everyone dies, everyone! My father, lying on the beach with a bullet through his heart. My brother, my mother, all my friends are dead! All the blood, there's too much! Make it stop, make it stop!" Jack shrieked.

"What's going on back there?" Tosh's voice filled Iantos head and made Jack thrash in terror.

"Working on it," Ianto muttered before ripping off the comm. and attempting to calm Jack down.

"It's everywhere and everything is just blood! People bleeding, dying, looking for a home and only finding destruction," Jack tried to roll to the side but Ianto grabbed his head between his hands and brought it closer to his own face, cupping his hands around Jack's eyes he blocked out everything else he could see.

"Sir, listen. It's just a tiny cut. No one is dying now. We're all safe and sound. Just calm down sir," Ianto stared into Jack's eyes, "Sir, are you alright?" Ianto asked, and Jack nodded. "Good,"

"I saw you… bleeding, tortured in front of me. You, Gwen, Tosh, Owen, all dying but I was stuck in chains. I couldn't do anything, I promise! Please forgive me! I didn't want it to happen, I didn't mean it! It wasn't my fault! I swear!" Jack pleaded.

"It was just a nightmare sir, never really happened," Ianto soothed him.

"But it did happen. It happened and I was powerless. Powerless to do anything other than watch as you got tortured to death in front of me. Thank god the doctor stopped the paradox… but I did. I did it for you, because if you weren't alive, then why should I be alive? I'm sorry, I should've stopped it earlier," Jack looked into Ianto's' eyes.

"Sir I-" Ianto looked away.

"Don't call me sir, it's jack. We've been working together long enough." Jack smiled weakly.

"Ok, Jack I-" this time Jack cut him off with a kiss. Ianto was trapped in Jacks hands, he couldn't move. Not that wanted to of course. After a second Ianto kissed back, leaning into Jack and pulling them closer together. When they finally broke apart Jack had a crazy grin on his face, and it was mirrored on Ianto.

"Now that's what I call a kiss," Jack murmured before falling unconscious, leaving a surprised Ianto holding his hand.


	3. Chapter 3

**Yay! Part 3! You guys excited?**

"Come on Ianto, stop fooling around with Jack," Ianto jumped as Owens's voice filtered through the speakers.

"Don't tease him Owen!" Tosh scolded. The SUV rolled to a stop and rocked as the team climbed out. The back doors opened and Tosh climbed in to help Ianto with Jack. Owen limped to the entrance and disappeared inside the store.

"Shit," Gwen muttered. "Look I gotta go home. Rhys is sick and I said I'd be home by nine!" Gwen took off and Tosh checked her watch.

"It's nearly midnight!" She called after her.

"Exactly!" Gwen shouted back.

By the time Ianto and Tosh hauled Jack into base Owen had grabbed a pair of crutches and laid a sheet on the examination table.

"Are those really necessary?" Tosh motioned to the crutches.

"No. But it'll feel better and hey, it's fun to have them," Owen smiled.

"Ok, so Owen can you work on Jack, run blood tests and things. Tosh if you try to figure out what they injected Jack with that would be helpful. I'll look at the dart and see what it did." They all went off to their respective work areas and fell silent. Ianto tried to concentrate but could only think about the ride in the SUV, and the kiss. Ianto shook himself out of the memories and tried to examine the dart.

"So there's a needle that plunged in on impact, explaining the wet patch on his shoulder after he was shot." Ianto whispered as he wrote down his observations. "Container-" Ianto was pulled from his thoughts by a yell.

"Bloody hell! That's not funny!" Owen shouted, and someone gave a very high-pitched giggle. Ianto and tosh rushed to the med center to see Jack leaning against the wall, laughing his head off while Owen grabbed his crutches off the ground.

"What happened?" Tosh asked.

"He scared me. Jumped out of nowhere, whispered boo and pushed me over. It's not funny!" Owen yelled again as Tosh started giggling.

"It actually is," Ianto laughed.

"You laugh at me and I'll laugh at you two!" the smile quickly fled Ianto's face.

"Owen!" Tosh whispered angrily.

"What? He laughed at me so I laugh at him. That's fair. Now lets get Mr. Loopy back to where I can run tests on him," Owen turned around to see Jack slumped over against the wall. "Makes it easier," as Owen bent down to pick Jack up, Jack jumped and yelled 'boo!' causing Owen to fall backwards again. Tosh burst out laughing but Ianto's face stayed perfectly controlled. Jack scurried up the stairs with a wild grin on his face.

"Tosh! Ianto!" Jack smiled, "Look, we're all here!" he let out a crazy laugh, "wait no… we're missing someone. Who are we missing? Suzie? No she's dead…" Jack's eyes were filled with sadness at the loss of a team member, "Gwen! That's who we're missing!" Jack went back to laughing and grinning scarily quickly.

"But you're here!" Jack pointed at Ianto, "and that's all that matters!" Jack spun around once and stopped with a look of surprise on his face, "Woah." He spun again and started laughing, "it's so much fun! Weeeeeeeeeeee!" Jack started spinning and Ianto had to grab him to stop him from spinning off the staircase.

"Jack calm down-" Ianto started.

"Don't tell me to calm down, tea boy!" Jack snapped, and then he collapsed into Ianto's arms. After Ianto lowered Jack to the ground he looked up at Tosh confusedly.

"Tea boy?"

**The 'don't tell me to calm down tea boy! Tea boy?' was a reference to Finding Nemo 'don't tell me to calm down pony boy! Pony boy?'**


	4. Chapter 4

**I'm posting this early cause I'm nice. It's kinda short so I'll post again Monday.**

By the time they had Jack settled again, Tosh and Owen were rubbing their eyes wearily.

"Do you want to go home?" Ianto asked them.

"If it won't be too much trouble," Tosh smiled.

"Course not," Ianto replied. Tosh turned around and left, leafing Ianto and Owen standing by Jack.

"What time is it anyway," Owen yawned.

"Half past two," Ianto replied.

"Usually I'd be fine with this but the past week has just been a killer…" Owen eyed Ianto suspiciously. "You're not tired?"

"I'm used to it,"

"How much sleep do you usually get?"

"Two to four hours a night," Ianto replied.

"Well that's what we've been getting recently. Hope you don't mind if I go home,"

"Not at all. Nothing big is going on right now, and Jack's out so I doubt he'll be a problem," Owen nodded his thanks and stumbled out the door. Ianto looked down at Jack before going to clean the base. He rearranged the papers into neat piles, picked up the discarded cups and plates and threw them away, he cleaned up all the random crap lying around the Hub and checked his watch, which read quarter past three.

"Now what am I supposed to do?" Ianto asked himself. Looking around he walked up to the monitors and checked the scans Tosh had running on the substance they injected Jack with. Ianto looked over the scans and tried to figure out what else they injected Jack with, besides the Vikatin. He hadn't been working ten minutes when someone started screaming bloody murder. Ianto jumped up from the seat and raced over to the med center, where the screams where originating. Jack was thrashing around on the table, knocking over devices and messing everything up. Jack threw himself side to side and would've fallen off if Ianto wasn't there to push him back up on the table.

"Jack calm down. It's just a dream," Ianto whispered to him. "Come on, wake up. Jack, wake up." Slowly the thrashing stopped and Jack opened his eyes.

"Dead," Jack whispered. "They're all dead. Dead and gone. Everyone, not a thing I can do. Never can join them, can't… Jack trailed off.

"It's ok, they're not dead. That is just a memory from the paradox, it got erased, never existed. We're all alive-" Ianto tried to comfort him.

"No, this wasn't the paradox. It was worse. Much worse. All of you were tortured in front of me, and I had to give information I didn't have to keep them from killing you. You were the last person, and before I had been lying and they figured it out, they took it out on you and… I wanted to stop them! But I was in chains and I was forced to watch as they slowly tortured you to death. And the screaming, the screaming, I couldn't do anything…" Jack stiffened as a spasm gripped his body. "No one could save you…" the sentence ended in a moan of pain as Jack was tortured by the images.

"Jack, open your eyes, just open them, the images will go away. Just open your eyes," Ianto murmured, trying to help. But Jack rocked back and forth, moaning and groaning and all Ianto could do was watch. Ianto looked around frantically, trying to find something that would calm Jack down, when he remembered the SUV. Jack had been having a panic attack and Ianto brought him back from that. Ianto turned around and marched over to Jack, Ianto grabbed Jack's shoulders and planted a firm kiss on Jack's mouth. He stopped thrashing and froze, before relaxing and lying down. As Ianto broke away he saw the smile on Jack's face, and Ianto smiled back, knowing the nightmares wouldn't come back.


	5. Chapter 5

**Sorry for not posting in a while! I forgot! But I'll post today and Wednesday to make up for it.**

**Chapter/Part 4! Enjoy!**

"Ianto I'm back!" Tosh called out into the base as she arrived.

"You didn't happen to wash the dart before giving it to me, did you?" Ianto appeared from behind a desk.

"No, why?"

"Just wondering," Ianto made to step behind the desk when Tosh asked him something.

"Aren't you tired?"

"No, why?"

"Well you couldn't have gotten more than…" she checked the monitors, "two hours of sleep last night,"

"Three, actually," Ianto smiled, "fell asleep while watching Jack. When I woke up I headed back to the couch."

"Still, three hours isn't a lot,"

"I'll be fine" Ianto reassured her, "The drug had a sedative in it. Not that strong, somewhat masked by the Vikatin. And was only active when he had a strong, happy feeling," Ianto reported.

"Strong and happy? Maybe the alien just didn't want you and Jack to hook up," Owen snickered as he entered.

"Owen! Be nice!" Gwen followed him in. Ianto just went back to working.

"Did Jack wake up after I left?" Owen asked

"Just once, around half past three. It was a nightmare, he calmed down after a bit." Ianto reported.

"Strong and happy," Owen muttered.

"I still feel like we're missing something in the drug," Ianto murmured.

"Owen, check for any sedative in his blood, or Vikatin. Should give us a hint on when he wakes up for good," Tosh called out. Ianto put some of the substance left in the dart under a microscope; he had been trying to extract it for the past hour and now was ready to analyze it.

"You know if that had been a direct hit to the heart I think he would've been loopy for a week. Might've even killed him," Tosh told them.

"Well they were aiming for Ianto." Gwen looked at Ianto, "maybe that's what they were trying to do…" Tosh and Gwen stared at Ianto, but he was saved from saying anything when Owen shouted.

"Tosh! Gwen! Ianto! He's waking up!" Owen called. Ianto ran over to the med center and waited to see if he would be loopy again. Slowly Jack blinked and opened his eyes.

"Ow… major headache." He muttered.

"Jack you're alive!" Gwen exclaimed.

"Course I'm alive! Although… what the hell am I doing here? I thought we were supposed to be going out for that alien?" Jack looked around confusedly.

"Jack," Ianto frowned, "are you-"

"Hey, you called me Jack! Not that I mind, in fact it's good. But honestly I thought when you got over calling me 'sir' it would be 'Captain' _then_ 'Jack' but oh well. Still much better than at first when you barely even talked. Just cleaned up all our shit without a word." Jack smiled and Ianto took a step back, suddenly aware of how close he had gotten.

"Jack, are you feeling alright?" Owen asked.

"Yeah I feel fine, why are you all staring at me like that?"

"Jack, what do you remember?" Tosh asked carefully.

"Let's see… we were about to go after the alien, we had a tracking device ready, got in the van… and now we're here." Jack looked at them all, "what did I miss?"

"Is it day or night?" Gwen asked.

"Night" he replied simply.

"Retcon." Everyone looked up to see Ianto standing at the ledge with a few pieces of paper, no one had noticed he left.

"What about Retcon?" Jack asked

"The dart had major amounts of Vikatin, which nearly masked the enhanced sedative. The combination of the Vikatin and sedative masked the Retcon so we didn't see it immediately. But if you ask the computer to specifically look for Retcon, some traces show up." Ianto set down the paper and looked at them.

"Why did you ask for Retcon?" Jack asked, he was completely confused.

"Well sir, you couldn't remember us leaving so I tried it and I was right." Ianto replied simply, but he didn't look Jack in the eye.

"Wonderful, and you… said something about Vikatin, right?" Jack looked at Tosh.

"Yes, they shot you with a load of Vikatin," she replied.

"And Vikatin is the stuff that makes you go loopy, correct?" they all nodded. "Ok… don't trust anything I did."

"Sorry, what?" Gwen asked.

"Vikatin makes people act unusually, do things they normally wouldn't do. So anything that I said or did, don't trust it. It wasn't me, it was the drug, none of it was real. You got that?" Jack looked at them and one by one they nodded, "good,"

**Review/Favorite/Follow please!**


	6. Chapter 6

**sd4ianto: Yes there was the kiss at the end of season one, but I forgot about that until I was halfway done with the story. So just pretend that it was something Jack does a lot. He does do it a lot, but in this story it didn't mean much to Jack, and Ianto knows it**

**Part 6! This part is pretty short, sorry about that, but it's very important!**

"Jack I have to go home to Rhys. He's sick and I promised I wouldn't stay out late." Gwen called.

"Ok, you'll be in tomorrow, right?" Jack asked.

"Yeah!" Then she left.

"Jack I need to head home as well. Dead tired from the past few days." Owen exited.

"Tosh are you going?" Jack asked.

"As soon as I finish this…" the sentence ended in a yawn and Jack patted her back.

"Go home, you can finish it tomorrow. I promise I won't touch it." Tosh smiled and left. Now only Jack and Ianto remained.

"You going home buddy?" Jack asked Ianto

"What? Oh, no sir. I want to keep working, sir." Ianto tried to smile but he didn't look Jack in the eye.

"You mean you want to make sure I don't go loopy again, right?" Jack chuckled.

"That too sir." Ianto started to go clean when Jack caught his shoulder.

"What exactly did I do under the Vikatin?" he asked, Ianto paused before answering

"Does it really matter sir? You said yourself not to trust what you did." Ianto thought about the ride back to base and knew it was just the Vikatin that had him acting that way.

"It doesn't matter, but that doesn't mean I don't want to know." Jack tried to get Ianto to answer.

"Maybe later sir," Ianto left

"And we're back to sir," Jack murmured


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7! Am I calling them parts or chapters? Oh well, thank you for reading my story! Feel free to leave comments! The card game they're playing is called BS (bull shit) it's basically putting down cards in order and lying if you don't have the right card. I don't know if they would have it in Cardiff (I live in America) but if they don't I'm assuming Jack taught it to them.**

Over the next few days the rift was quiet, and Torchwood stayed in their base. Most of the time they talked or played games, having nothing better to do, but Ianto never joined them.

"You say you put down a four? Well I say that's bull shit!" Jack flashed a winning smile, "Because I have all of the fours!"

"Damn it!" Owen complained as he took the entire drop pile.

"One five," Tosh hesitantly put down a card.

"Bull shit!" Gwen shot at her, but Tosh smiled.

"Take it."

"What? Oh I thought I had all four of them! Well, now I do." Gwen reorganized her cards and Jack leaned forward.

"Does Into seem… off to anyone?" the others froze and glanced at each other and Jack knew they saw it too. "Because ever since I forgot he's been really quiet."

"Two sixes." Gwen put down a card.

"Really, what happened when I got shot?" Jack asked them.

"Well you see-" Owen started but Tosh cut I'm off.

"I don't think it's our place to tell," she said forcefully.

"What do you mean by that?" Jack looked at her confusedly.

"What happened was between you and Ianto, if he hasn't told you I don't think we should. Forgetting hurts, and sometimes we just have to live with it." Tosh stated.

"Ok, fine then." Jack leaned back, "one seven." As he slapped a card down Ianto walked out of a side room. When he saw them sitting there he paused, before continuing forward.

"Hey Ianto!" Jack called, "why don't you come join us?"

"No thanks sir, I have things to do."

"Really? Like what?" Jack asked

"Just… cleaning. This place has been getting really messy the past few days sir." Ianto exited through another door.

"What did I tell you," Jack whispered.

~oOoOoOo~

Later that night Ianto was cleaning up more garbage when he heard Jack screaming,

"No! No! Please not them! I'm begging you please! Not them! No!" Ianto slowly lowered himself into Jack's sleeping quarters to find the captain thrashing around in his bed.

"Sir wake up, sir." Ianto gently shook Jack awake.

"Ianto! What…" Jack was breathing heavily.

"Was it the paradox sir?" Ianto asked.

"Yeah. Wait, when did I tell you?" Jack asked confusedly

"After you got shot, sir."

"Ok, thanks for waking me up."

"You're welcome sir." There was a pause before Jack said,

"And don't tell the others."

"Don't worry sir, I won't." Ianto climbed back up to the office and continued to clean. After a few minutes of lying in his bed Jack climbed up as well. He walked around his office before going down the stairs to where Ianto was watching the monitors.

"Anything exciting happening?" Jack asked as he hopped on a stool.

"No sir." Ianto's eyes stayed fixed on the screen. Jack frowned, contemplating how to get him to talk

"Don't you ever sleep?" Jack smiled.

"I'm not tired sir." Ianto replied. Jack looked at Ianto and noticed the bags under his eyes.

"You sure? Cause you sure look it," now Jack actually was concerned.

"I'll be fine sir."

"But-" Jack started

"Really sir," Ianto turned his head to look at Jack, "I'll be fine." He turned back to the monitors.

"Ok." Jack looked at Ianto sadly, remembering how he used to be so much more open and talkative. Jack slid off the stool and was making his way back to his office when an alarm went off. Jack turned sharply and raced back to Ianto's side.

"It's the rift sir, it's active. At the department store, where we were last time. And… there seems to be more of it splitting, like the aliens we fought last time sir, they split in half." Ianto glanced at Jack.

"Get the others."

**Dun-dun-duhn… What's gonna happen this time? Is someone else going to get hurt? Uh-oh!**


	8. Chapter 8

**This is an exciting part, hope you all enjoy it!**

"Owen, get the SUV ready! Gwen, carry his stuff! Tosh, bring your equipment! Let's go, go, go!" Jack was about to leave when he turned around, "Ianto, come on."

"But sir, wouldn't it be more prudent if-" but Jack cut him off

"Just come." Jack grabbed Ianto's hand and dragged him out the door and down to the SUV. When Owen saw Ianto coming he paused and looked at Jack,

"Shouldn't someone stay at base?" Owen shot at Ianto.

"If you want to stay, then sure." Jack hopped in the SUV and Ianto followed.

"So rift activity around the department store where we were last time, and the rift signs were splitting like something was splitting itself up?" Tosh asked for clarification.

"Yeah. And someone got into a crash near the store because they were looking at people who looked 'too much alike'" Ianto read off a device.

"Who looked too much alike?" Jack asked.

"The janitors," Everyone but Jack swore under their breath.

"Wait, I'm missing something," Jack looked at them all.

"The alien we were chasing was disguised as janitor. Multiple janitors in fact. The real janitors were running up the steps and we were chasing them. If you shoot the original alien all of the clones die." Tosh explained.

"Right, so… we're trying to stop the alien?" Jack looked at them for clarification,

"Yeah." Owen confirmed from the drivers seat. They arrived at the store and piled out of the SUV.

"Gwen, Tosh and Owen go left, Ianto and I will go right," Jack ordered, but no one moved. "What's wrong?" he asked confusedly,

"This is what we did last time," Gwen told him,

"And…?" Jack looked at them skeptically,

"Well we don't want a repeat of that, do we?" Owen muttered,

"Ok fine. Owen and Ianto go left, Gwen, Tosh and I will go right." They nodded and took off.

"So Tosh, where we headed?" Owen asked into the comm.

"Straight up to the rooftop." She replied,

"No chance of it being a mistake?" Ianto whispered.

"This time I've got a fix." Owen and Ianto kept running up the stairs.

"This is bloody insane, this is." Owen muttered finally.

"What? Chasing an alien that can split in half?" Ianto paused to look behind him at Owen.

"No, following a captain who can't remember the last time we fought this alien."

"Don't be mad at Jack it's not his fault." Ianto immediately jumped to Jack's defense.

"Right, sorry, stupid of me to insult him in front of shagg toy," Ianto froze,

"I'm _not_ his shag toy!" Ianto told Owen forcefully,

"Right, sorry, course you're not. You only kissed him twice and he can't remember it." Ianto took a deep breath and kept climbing. "You were so disappointed when Jack couldn't remember."

"Shut up."

"You thought you finally had someone who wouldn't die, or become a Cyberman, but it turns out it was just the drug."

"I said: shut up!"

"Cause you're just the tea boy. The tea boy who gets no attention from the man he loves," Owen sneered, "cause Jack doesn't love you, he loves someone else, someone out of bounds, so he puts all his affection on you-" Ianto slammed Owen into a wall.

"I'm going to tell you one more time: shut the fuck up." Ianto snarled.

"Make me," Owen pushed off from the wall and threw Ianto into the railing. Owen tried to kick Ianto but he ducked, and Owen made a hole in the wall instead. Ianto ran up a few steps before turning around to punch Owen in the face, sending him sprawling. Owen rolled and kicked Ianto's legs out from under him. Owen climbed on top and started punching Ianto again and again. Ianto twisted and kneed Owen in the crotch, causing Owen to roll sideways letting Ianto grab his arm and twist it back.

"Say you're sorry!" Ianto shouted,

"No!" Owen snarled,

"Say it!" Ianto demanded,

"No!" Owen twisted around and punched Ianto with his free arm. As Ianto stumbled back, letting Owen push him against the wall and lock his fingers around his throat.

"I'm not going to let you beat me, tea boy. I am so much better than you, you are just there to make the coffee. You understand that!" Ianto struggled against Owen's grip but couldn't push him off. "You will never beat me, you will never be better than me. So don't think for a second, that you are even close to special." Ianto couldn't breathe or speak, he couldn't move, and his world was going dark. "Hope you like death." Owen whispered into Ianto's ears. Then Owen's weight vanished and Ianto collapsed on the ground.

**This isn't good!**


	9. Chapter 9

**To all of the people who wanted to know what happened to Owen: You won't really find out in this chapter, more like the next two... but this chapter is equally suspenseful, maybe even more...**

"Ianto, come one, don't be dead," a voice floated into Ianto's head.

'_I'm not dead'_ he tried to say, but couldn't will himself to say it, '_or am I?_'

"Ianto!" someone was shaking him, "Ianto wake up!" then there was a sharp slap and Ianto opened his eyes to a bright light,

"Ow…" Ianto muttered,

"Thank god you're alive," Ianto blinked and looked up to see Jack smiling at him.

"How did you find me?" Ianto croaked, his voice still sore from when Owen squeezed it,

"You guys never turned your comm. off so we heard the fight. We ran to the top and came down to you. Turns out you were only a flight from the top." Ianto blinked again and looked down to see Tosh and Gwen holding Owen by his shoulders. Instinctively Ianto scrambled back from Owen, but Jack grabbed his arms.

"Woah slow down, Owen won't hurt you anymore."

"What happened anyway? Owen can't remember and all we heard was…" Tosh glanced at Gwen

"We… had an argument," Ianto said slowly,

"Got that much. Owen is annoying sometimes but… killing each other?" Gwen asked,

"I didn't mean it! I swear! I'm sorry!" Owen told him, but when he talked Ianto flinched away.

"Okay, maybe you were possessed or something, I don't know. But right now we have to keep moving, we need to catch the alien." Jack stood and helped Ianto up, "Gwen and Tosh, make sure Owen doesn't go crazy again. Ianto, can you walk?" Jack asked,

"Uh… yes sir." Ianto replied, but when he took a step he nearly fell over and Jack had to catch him.

"Or not. Let's go," Jack helped Ianto up the last flight of stairs and they paused at the door.

"Get out your guns. Tosh and Gwen you can let go of Owen. Ianto, can you stand now?" Ianto nodded, "You sure?"

"Yes." Ianto replied.

"Good. Everyone stay behind me, if they shoot me I'll be fine. Gwen and Tosh, stay in front and in back of Ianto, I don't want him collapsing or anything."

"Sir, I'll be fine," Ianto insisted.

"At least stay in the back," Jack looked at him pleadingly so Ianto did as he was told.

"On three, one, two, three!" Jack pushed through the doors and looked out. "What do we have here?" Jack laughed loudly; he motioned the others to follow him. Slowly they all crept onto the rooftop, Jack first, then Owen, then Gwen, then Tosh, and Ianto last. When they stood on rooftop Ianto counted at least fifty aliens, probably more, and they were still multiplying.

"Look, you can't over populate Earth. This is a level five-" Jack stopped as they all raised their guns. "Maybe you can go to the moon? Or how about Pluto? Nice little planet where…" he trailed off as the click of the safety filled the roof. "Tell me the entire plan!" Jack yelled, but none of them flinched. "One day that'll work… everyone down!" Jack dropped to the ground and the others followed suit.

Except Ianto was in the back.  
Ianto couldn't hear him.  
Ianto was still winded by Owen's attack.

And when the aliens started shooting, Ianto was the only one left standing. The bullets ripped through the air and pounded into Ianto,

_BAM  
BAM  
BAM  
BAM_

Ianto stumbled backwards as each bullet hit, and locked eyes with Jack before falling backwards.

Except Ianto was already in the back, and when he took those steps backwards it brought him dangerously close to the edge. So when he fell… he fell off the roof.


	10. Chapter 10

**This chapter has an exciting plot twist! Get ready for it!**

**Short chapter but really… sad**

"Tell me who the original alien is!" none of the aliens flinched at Jack's yell. "One day that'll work," he muttered to himself more than any of the others, "everyone down!" Jack dropped to the floor, hearing the _thud_ of his teammates behind him, but a few sickening cracks whipped Jack's head around. Ianto was still standing and there was blood flowing from his body. Jack watched him stumble backwards and saw his eyes full of fear and pain as he fell off the roof. Dimly he was aware someone was screaming, and realized it was him. The firing stopped and Jack stood up, shaking with rage.

"You killed him," Jack muttered as he turned to face the aliens. "You killed him!" he shouted again. "If I were you I would be running, because you just killed someone I like, and that is not a safe place to stand." Jack glared at the aliens and saw a flicker of uncertainty cross their faces. "So unless you want me to commit genocide, get the fuck off this planet." The aliens shifted backwards, but it wasn't until a noise echoed into existence did they panic. It was the sound of the universe, the most beautiful and most terrible thing you could ever hear. One by one the aliens shimmered and disappeared until there was only one left, as the blue police box appeared on the rooftop the alien ran, but Jack raised his gun and shot it through the heart.

"Now c'mon Jack, don't be like that." He heard a familiar voice say.

"Why not?" Jack asked hopelessly, "I… I lost him Doctor. He's gone," and with that Jack collapsed to the ground. The Doctor walked over to him and patted him on the shoulder before turning to the team.

"Owen, go inside the TARDIS, someone needs your help." Owen looked startled at being addressed by the Doctor but did as he was told.

"I'm sorry but… have we met before?" Tosh asked uncertainly.

"Right, you don't remember me. Well of course you don't, you were dying and even if you did remember it would mean… well it would mean the end of the world. Anyway, I'm the Doctor. Not Doctor who, just the Doctor." The Doctor smiled.

"End of the world?" Gwen asked,

"Paradox. Tiny machines that were really the future of the human race killed a ton of people. We stopped the paradox, after a year, but you were all tortured to death in front of Jack. Since Jack couldn't die the Master killed you. Horrible but… you really didn't tell them why you were gone?" the Doctor asked Jack, but Jack was staring numbly on the ground. "Anyway, it's all over now. Killed the paradox, everything's right back where it started, no harm done." The Doctor smiled.

"But it doesn't bring Ianto back. Not this time," Jack muttered miserably,

"Jack, the TARDIS is a very powerful and complex machine. Do you really think I would let someone that important to you die?"

**Wait… does that mean what I think it means?**


	11. Chapter 11

**Hey people! I decided to give you guys this next part, you'll find out what happens to Ianto andwhat happened to Owen, enjoy!**

"Jack, the TARDIS is a very powerful and complex machine. Do you really think I would let someone that important to you die?" Gwen and Tosh exchanged a confused look but before either could say anything Jack was bursting into the TARDIS and kneeling next to Martha and Owen.

"Don't worry, he'll live." Martha told him, "He's strong. Four shots, left shoulder, left waist, right upper arm and right thigh." Martha looked at Jack quickly before going back to work on Ianto. "Owen says he was shot top to bottom, left, right, left, right. When you're hit on one side you tend to curl around it, leaving the other side more open to getting shot. I don't think the aliens meant to kill him, none of his vital organs were hit, and the bullets mostly missed the bone. I think the aliens meant to injure him just enough so they had time to get away. That didn't work too well did it?" Jack didn't respond to her, "Jack?"

"No it didn't." Jack's eyes were wide and searching Ianto's face for a sign of life.

"He lost a lot of blood so he'll be pretty weak," Owen told him.

"It's your bloody fault he got shot!" Jack quickly stood and shoved Owen against a beam, "if you didn't attack him he would've dropped soon enough!" Jack roared,

"Jack!" Martha cried, but she had to take care of Ianto and couldn't do anything.

"You were going to kill him! I heard you! You nearly killed him and I don't know what got into you but I'll sure as hell kill it!" Jack shoved Owen against the wall even harder, before a pair of hands drew him back.

"Calm down Jack. Besides, you're upsetting Ianto." The Doctor whispered into his ear. Immediately Jack was by Ianto's side, holding his hand and gazing at his face, waiting for him to wake up.

"What did you do to Ianto?" the Doctor asked Owen.

"I… I dunno I just… attacked him." Owen bowed his head, ashamed.

"Why?"

"Owen was teasing Ianto about… stuff that happened after Jack was shot with a large dose of Vikatin, sedative and Retcon. When Jack woke up he couldn't remember and Owen made fun of Ianto." Tosh explained hesitantly, "I think it did start out as teasing but it got rough and they started fighting. I don't know exactly what happened but Gwen, Jack and I arrived just in time to pry Owen off Ianto to keep them from murdering each other."

"Well that's odd," the Doctor mused,

"What? What's odd?" Owen asked quickly,

"Well seeing as Jack was the one shot with Vikatin, sedative, and Retcon I would expect him to be the one going crazy. In fact I think that's what they wanted. How was he shot again?"

"They were aiming for Ianto actually. Jack pushed Ianto down and jumped in the line of fire. I think that they were trying to get Ianto so loopy it would push him to insanity and maybe kill him, but Jack pushed him down and got shot in the shoulder. Not all of it went in, only about a quarter actually entered his bloodstream." Tosh offered.

"So they were trying to get Ianto sick, but not immediately dead, giving some hope that he would survive so when he finally died it would be even more devastating." The Doctor looked at Jack with a slight smile before turning to look at Owen, "Yet Owen's the one going mad," the Doctor puzzled over it for a second and moved to examine Owen closer. "Maybe they injected you so you would go mad at some point as well. But how? I mean if you had been injected you would've felt it, feels like a shot, unless they did something else at the same time to keep your mind off it, nothing to serious to handicap you but just enough… oh!" he shouted and everyone looked up at him. "Of course! The janitor that pushed you and sprained your ankle, and they did that to keep your mind off the shot! And after is when you started being really mean!" the Doctor's face lit up with excitement,

"How did you know that?" Gwen asked,

"Martha wanted to say one last goodbye to Jack, so I've been following you guys for a few days." The Doctor explained,

"Ok, so I'm injected with this… thing that makes me mean. How do we know when it's out?" Owen asked,

"You're no longer mean," the Doctor replied simply.

"Yeah well tough luck, I'm always mean. So what are you gonna do to me? Scan me? Put me in a cell? No fucking thanks. Cause I'm getting the fuck out of here you fucking idiots." Owen made to leave but the Doctor snapped his fingers and the doors closed, no matter how hard Owen pulled they wouldn't open.

"I'm sorry," the Doctor whispered before injecting him with a sedative and letting him slump to the ground.

"It's safe to move him," Martha spoke up from Ianto's side. Jack took a deep breath before standing up.

"Tosh, get Owen. Gwen, help me with Ianto." Jack turned towards Martha, "thanks."

"No problem." She smiled, "I might see more of you, I'm staying here, just wanted to have one last goodbye." Martha smiled. Jack turned to the Doctor.

"Thank you. Thank you so much. If you hadn't him saved I…" Jack couldn't finish the sentence.

"That's what friends do. Besides, I wouldn't be very much of a friend if I let one of the only people you care about die." The Doctor smiled. Jack saluted him and helped Gwen carry Ianto out of the TARDIS.

"So that's the Doctor?" Gwen asked,

"Yeah," Jack replied wearily. "Ok, Gwen drives, Tosh passenger, Owen in the back, and I'll keep Ianto company in the very back." Jack told them as they neared the SUV. Jack climbed in and set Ianto's head on his lap and grabbed his friends' hand. Shaking off the feeling of de-ja-vu Jack stared off into space.

"It's dark," Ianto murmured.

"You're awake!" Jack looked at him excitedly.

"Ow… yeah I am. Shit that hurts." Ianto moaned,

"Shh, save your breath. We're heading back to the Hub where we can get you properly fixed up." Jack told him gently.

"But it hurts… it hurts so much…" Ianto groaned.

"We gave him some sedative and a little Vikatin so he'll sleep soon," Owen's voice sounded through the comm. and Ianto flinched.

"Thanks, but I think I can handle it," Jack took the comm. off.

"Why did he attack me?" Ianto asked softly,

"Medication gone bad."

"Kind of like you, huh?" Ianto laughed weakly.

"What did I do? When I was under the Vikatin? Because they keep referencing it and you fought with Owen about it."

"You talked a lot about the doctor, and a paradox. We were… dead… but not… and you…" the last words were so quiet Jack couldn't hear them over the roar of the engine.

"Sorry what?" Jack leaned in closer.

"You told me to save my breath… sir,"

"Don't call me sir, it's Jack. We've been working together long enough," Jack smiled.

"Ok, Jack." Ianto closed his eyes and fell asleep.


	12. Chapter 12

**I'm sorry for not updating in a long time! I was in a musical and the story sorta flew to the back of my mind, but here's the next chapter!**

**This part is short but REALLY EXCITING AND HAPPY AND KINDA SAD BUT GOOD AND IMPORTANT! FEEL FREE TO LEAVE COMMENTS!**

Ianto blinked slowly at the bright light and rolled his head sideways to see Jack sitting next to him.

"You feeling all right?" Jack asked, and Ianto frowned, completely confused.

"How did I get here? Since when have I been in casts? Was I shot? What's going on? We were in the hospital and…" Ianto looked around, panicked, "Owen was there, he wanted to kill me! I don't know what happened to him!" As Ianto took in his injuries he was even more scared, his left shoulder had a large bandage on it, and his right arm was in a cast, his left hip was covered in bandages as well, and his right thigh had another cast around it.

"Calm down, you're safe now." Jack soothed him. Ianto took a few deep breaths and closed his eyes.

"Did I get shot? Like you did? With the Vikatin and Retcon?" Ianto asked haltingly.

"No, you were shot with regular bullets, Owen had to-" Jack started to explain,

"No! No not Owen! Not him! Please not him! Nonononononono!" Ianto cried.

"It's ok! He's no longer here! It's just you and me," Jack tried to calm Ianto down.

"He pinned me to the wall, he was going to squeeze the breath out of my body, until my world was black! I couldn't fight him off, he was too strong, and the darkness came…" Jack was trying desperately to shake Ianto out of his flashback but Ianto was oblivious to the real world. "And all because of the stupid aliens! The aliens filled Jack with the drug to make him go loopy. Not my fault, I didn't want to but I wasn't against it either! Why did he have to? Then Owen wouldn't have teased me about it! It would've been the same always with it just in my head! But now they know, they all know except him and it's only a matter of time until he figures it out too!"

"Figure out what? What will I figure out?" Jack asked anxiously,

"The stupid kiss started it all, all of it! If it weren't for the kiss none of this would've happened…" Ianto trailed off, still muttering but much softer.

"That's why you didn't want to tell me." Jack whispered as he looked down at Ianto. "You were afraid it was just the drug making me do that. You were afraid I didn't have any real feelings for you. Sure we flirted but I flirt with everyone…" Jack smiled at Ianto and said even softer. "I bet it was one hell of a kiss."


	13. Chapter 13

Ianto woke up suddenly gasping for breath, startling Jack who was sitting on a stool near him.

"Ianto! You're awake! Are you going to go crazy again?" Jack asked playfully, but his smile disappeared when he saw the look of utter confusion on Ianto's face.

"What… why do I have these casts on? Did I get shot? When did I get shot? I don't remember it! I only remember Owen and his eyes full of…" Ianto trailed off and shook his head slowly. "What happened to me?" he asked, his voice full of pain.

"Do you not remember?" Jack asked carefully, not wanting to set off another panic attack.

"No, I only remember Owen trying to kill me… how did I escape? Is Owen here now? Is he going to hurt me again? Is he the one who shot me?"

"Calm down, one question at a time!" Jack reached for Ianto's hand but Ianto pulled it away. "Right… Owen was trying to kill you only because the aliens injected him with something to make him go insane and super mean, right now he's locked in a cell and Tosh is trying to collect blood samples but Owen isn't being helpful. When Owen had you pinned against the wall you were only a few floors from the top, and you never turned off your comm. so Tosh, Gwen and I heard the entire thing and came to save you. When we reached the top we walked out in single file, I was first, then Owen, then Gwen, then Tosh, and you were last. The aliens weren't cooperating and were about to shoot us when I yelled to get down. We all got down to escape the line of fire, all of us except you. You were still winded from the attack and in the back so you didn't exactly hear me. And the aliens started shooting and they… they shot you," Jack took a deep breath and kept going, "you were shot four times, and after each hit took a step backwards. Then you… you uh… you fell off the roof." Jack blinked a few tears away as he remembered watching Ianto fall,

"I fell off the roof? How did I survive?" Ianto asked, scared and confused.

"I have an old… friend, his name is the Doctor, and he's got a machine that can travel anywhere in time and space, and he saved you while you were falling. Then my friend Martha Jones started treating you, and Owen helped." Jack paused when he saw Ianto flinch at Owen's name. "They got you stabilized and we drove back here." Jack finished,

"Have I woken up before this?" Ianto whispered,

"Once, but it was just a rant about Owen and how he tried to kill you." Jack smiled reassuringly,

"Did I say why he tried to kill me?" Ianto asked, and Jack realized Ianto was trying to figure out if he knew about the kiss, deciding to let Ianto not have to worry he cracked another smile,

"Just that you two have always had a little feud." Ianto breathed a sigh of relief and lay back more comfortably than before.

"Hey he's awake!" Jack looked up to see Gwen standing at the top of the stairs,

"Yep, and despite some memory loss completely fine."

"Memory loss? Like you?" Gwen asked worriedly,

"Nothing that serious, he forgot everything from Owen onwards but I've filled him in."

"That's good. But he'll have to use a wheelchair, won't he?"

"He is still in the room, and would like it if you talked to him," Ianto interrupted angrily,

"Sorry Ianto," Gwen apologized.

"Will I have to use a wheelchair?" Ianto asked,

"Crutches would be more suitable. Especially here where there are so many stairs and obstacles, and I think sitting all the time would bother your hip too much," Tosh joined them,

"Ianto, do you feel like you can use crutches?" Jack asked him.

"Yeah, I mean… sure."

"Go grab a pair," Jack ordered Tosh. Tosh left and appeared a moment later carrying a pair.

"This is going to be fun," Ianto muttered, and Jack laughed before helping Ianto off of the table and over to the crutches.

**I know, kind of cheesy ending, but I needed to end this part somewhere, and I hope you all enjoy the next chapter! Feel free to leave reviews! All are welcome! Even if it's pointing out mistakes (I make those constantly)**


	14. Chapter 14

In the next days Ianto was struggling. Not just with the crutches and learning how to maneuver around in them while still injured, he struggled with everything. His voice hurt when he used it, it hurt him to stand and hurt him to sit, he had to spend most of his time lying down, it hurt him to watch Jack walk by without even glancing at him, it hurt him to sleep, because nightmares constantly plagued him, but it hurt him to stay awake night after night, avoiding the darkness in his mind.

"Hey Ianto," Tosh sat down on the couch next to him one day,

"Hello Tosh," he replied, while wincing from the pain in his hip.

"Are you ok?" she asked worriedly

"Course I am, why wouldn't I be?" Ianto lied

"Does it still hurt?"

"Sometimes," he admitted,

"Are you getting enough sleep?" she pestered,

"I'm fine Tosh, please just… leave me alone" he snapped. Tosh leaned away in surprise but left him to his thoughts. Another spike of pain traveled up his side and he grit his teeth, wishing the pain would just go away. Someone settled onto the couch next to him and Ianto looked over to see Jack.

"How are you doing?" Jack asked,

"Perfectly fine," Ianto spat out as leg gave a sharp prod of pain.

"You don't look it," Jack told him.

"No shit," Ianto whispered.

"Hey, we're trying to help you. We don't know what you want unless you tell us, ok?" Jack patted him on his shoulder and Ianto shut his eyes tightly as pain blossomed from the wound. "Sorry," Jack whispered.

"Yeah, whatever." Ianto murmured, all of his strength gone.

"I noticed you no longer call me sir," Jack told him, and Ianto frowned, momentarily confused.

"Oh… sorry sir, I must've-"

"No it's fine, you don't have to call me sir, we've worked together long enough." Jack smiled,

"First time you've said that when neither of us are under drugs," Ianto muttered,

"What?" Jack asked,

"What?" Ianto looked at Jack, unaware he had said anything.

"Do you need to sleep?" Ianto opened his mouth to protest before realizing that was exactly what he needed.

"If you can get me sleep without nightmares then sure," Ianto replied tiredly.

"I wish I could but… why don't you tell me about them," Jack shifted so he was facing Ianto more.

"I can't." Ianto looked away,

"Really, you can tell me, it helps sometimes." Jack told him.

"Really, I can't tell you." Ianto replied.

"Do you forget them?" Jack asked,

"Yeah," Ianto lied, "No idea what happened after I wake up," Ianto laughed softly.

"How about you go to sleep in one of the extra rooms, I'm sure there's a room with a bed somewhere."

"Actually there's only one." Ianto informed him,

"What room?"

"Yours." Jack paused for a moment before replying,

"Then you can sleep there,"

"I can't actually. The ladder," Ianto explained when Jack looked confused.

"Oh… well we can move a bed into an extra room, or clear a room out and move something in there for you to sleep on." Ianto nodded his agreement,

"In the meantime I'll make a cup of coffee," shakily Ianto stood up and made his way over to the coffee machine.

"You're magic." Jack called after him.

"The pots mostly full so I'll just set it up and all you'll have to do is press the on button and you'll get coffee," Ianto explained to Jack a few minutes later.

"The room's ready," Tosh announced as she appeared on the stairs Jack helped Ianto to his makeshift room and told him about the way they had the room set up,

"There's a camera watching so if you have nightmares we can wake you up," Jack informed him,

"Thanks," Ianto looked down, embarrassed he needed people to watch him sleep.

"Anyway, I'll let you sleep, we'll be right out there if you need anything,"

"I may be a cripple but I'm not helpless," Ianto muttered after Jack had left. He set his crutches down and collapsed on the bed, soon falling asleep.

**Do you like it? Good/not good? Leave reviews please!**


	15. Chapter 15

**Sorry for not updating in a while! I got a lot of tests and it kind of slipped my mind... there's only a few chapters left though!**

"Ugh there's no more coffee," Gwen complained.

"Ianto set it up, all you have to do is press on and put the pot under the spout," Jack informed her.

"Oh… well that's helpful," Gwen grabbed the coffee pot and switched the machine on.

"Yeah, thank god he thinks ahead or else we'd be coffee deprived," Tosh laughed.

"Yeah… are you getting anywhere on Owen's blood tests?" Jack asked Tosh,

"As far as I can tell it's out of his system. But we should keep him down for a little longer." Tosh told him, she then looked at the monitors and frowned. "Hey Jack, I think Ianto's having one of his nightmares,"

"What makes you say that?" Jack asked as he walked over to the computer. Tosh hit the volume button and Ianto's voice filtered through,

"No… no, please no! I need… please… she has to be alive! Lisa…" He mumbled.

"I'll go wake him up," Jack headed over to Ianto's room.

~oOoOoOo~

Ianto was running up the stairs, he had to find her, had to! She couldn't be upgraded; he needed her to be alive. Ianto jumped up the stairs four at a time, hoping he would find her soon. A door burst open a level under him and he ducked into a closet.

"I need to grab one thing, it'll be from a room with a lot of fighting, so just stay back and let me get it." A man with brown hair in a suit rushed by, followed by a blond haired girl in a blue sweater, another man in a black suit and a guy in all black clothing carrying a gun. They disappeared and Ianto crept out and started running up the stairs even faster than before.

"Lisa!" he called out, he climbed countless more flights before looking up to see a Cyberman above him,

"Delete." It said, Ianto looked around and ran onto the fire escape. He waited for the Cyberman to burst through the door and kill him, but it didn't. Ianto looked through the window and saw the Cyberman arguing with itself. "I will not… delete, no, no delete, I did my duty for queen and country," and it continued down the stairs. Ianto hurried along the fire escape, dodging the killing rays he peered into window after window, looking for a sign of Lisa. As he looked into one window he saw a line of people, all waiting anxiously by a curtain.

"Lisa!" He shouted when he spot her, but she couldn't hear him and was lead away by the Cybermen, "Lisa, no!" Ianto pounded the glass but it refused to break. Suddenly the shots stopped and the Cybermen were flying through the air, something on the top floor seemed to be attracting the Cybermen and the Daleks, pulling them all in. Ianto ducked out of the way just before the Cybermen burst through the window and followed their companions on the flight up. All of the people waiting ran to the stairs and were gone within seconds, but Ianto needed to find Lisa.

"Lisa!" He called again, and heard a strangled cry. Ianto rushed through the broken window and over to the curtain, ignoring the glass that was everywhere. He pulled back the curtain to see what was left of Lisa as she collapsed. He ran forward to catch her, and felt the chill of metal on her, she was no longer human. They had started to upgrade her but it hadn't finished, and now she was stuck in this half-cyberised state.

"Help! Someone please help me!" He cried out, but no one was close enough to hear him. All of a sudden he was lifted off his feel, and he looked down at Lisa pleadingly, but she was no longer Lisa. Her eyes were unfeeling and remote, and her voice was hollow and void of emotion.

"Delete." She monotones, then there was a flash of pain and a blinding bright light


	16. Chapter 16

**Thank you for all your reviews! This story is almost over. One chapter after this. Hope you enjoy!**

Ianto gasped and opened his eyes to the naked bulbs hanging on the ceiling.

"You're awake," Ianto looked over to see Jack sitting by his side,

"Yeah, but-" he shut his mouth as a strike of pain hit his shoulder. "Shit that hurts,"

"I can imagine," Jack sympathized.

"What are you even doing here?" Ianto asked,

"We noticed you were having a nightmare," Jack told him,

"How did you notice?"

"You were thrashing around, muttering, regular nightmare stuff." Jack looked at him, "do you remember what the nightmare was about?"

"Uh… yeah, actually. I remember…"Ianto trailed off.

"Do you want to tell me about it? Might help you cope with it," Jack persuaded

"No I… I can't, I just can't." Ianto looked down,

"Ok, I'll let you get back to sleep. We'll wake you if there's another nightmare." Jack smiled and left, leaving Ianto alone with his thoughts. Ianto lay in the bed and started to drift back to sleep. Just as sleep was about to overwhelm him a spike of pain shot through his leg and he was brought back to reality. After the pain was gone he tried to fall back asleep, and when he was close his arm throbbed with pain and he woke up again.

"Damn it," Ianto whispered. He lay there thinking, hoping that sleep would soon come to claim him, but to no avail. Whenever he got close to falling asleep the pain would all come rushing back and he would be lying on the makeshift bed again. This went on for half an hour. Finally he swung his legs around and sat on the bed, resting his arms on his knees. He closed his eyes and pressed his fingers on them, but all he could see was a bloody Lisa. Then a bloody Owen, and Gwen, and Tosh, and a torn apart Jack. Ianto leaned back and looked at the wall opposite him

"Damn it," Ianto muttered again.

~oOoOoOo~

"Jack we're out of coffee," Gwen called.

"Ianto set it up, all you have to do is-"

"No we've already used that. We're really out of coffee." Gwen replied.

"Oh," Jack frowned, "it can't be that hard, I'll try." Jack made his way out of his office and down to the coffee machine.

"You really shouldn't, I don't think Ianto likes it when you mess with his coffee machine." Tosh warned him,

"He won't even know the difference! Besides, it's just coffee." Jack scoffed as he grabbed some of the coffee beans. Tosh watched him from her spot next to the computer and was just waiting for him to make a mistake.

_BEEP. BEEP. BEEP. BEEP._

Jack froze as the machine let out a high pitched beeping noise.

_BEEP. BEEP. BEEP. BEEP._

"Shit," Jack whispered.

"Really easy, right Jack?" Gwen smiled.

_BEEP. BEEP. BEEP. BEEP._

"This isn't a normal coffee maker!" Jack protested.

"Just go get Ianto!" Gwen rolled her eyes,

"But… I don't want to wake him up, especially if he just got back to sleep from his nightmares,"

_BEEP. BEEP. BEEP. BEEP._

"He's awake," Tosh announced.

"Go get him!" Gwen urged him as Jack scurried over to the makeshift room. He knocked on the door a few times before opening it,

"Hey Ianto," Jack smiled,

"Hi," Ianto replied, his eyes were fixed on the wall opposite him.

"Um… we ran out of coffee, and tried to use the machine, but it didn't really work…" Jack trailed off,

"You tried to use the coffee machine?" Ianto looked at Jack, "let me guess, it's now beeping really loudly," Ianto picked up his crutches and balanced on them.

"Yeah," Jack shrugged, "sorry." Ianto just shook his head and slowly made his way down to the main level.

_BEEP. BEEP. BEEP. BEEP._

Ianto hurried over to the coffee machine and started messing with it as Jack stood behind him.

_BEEP. BEEP. BE-_

The beeping stopped and Gwen let out a sigh.

"That was getting annoying, you know?" She laughed; before Jack could join her Ianto had turned on the Captain.

"Never," Ianto glared at Jack, "never, ever, touch my coffee machine again." Ianto strode so forcefully towards Jack he had to walk backwards until he was up against the wall. "I don't care what the circumstances are, you do _not_ touch the coffee machine. Understand? Or I'll put all of you on instant decaf for a month!"

"I get it, I understand," Jack replied quickly,

"Good," Ianto turned away and started making a new pot of coffee.

"For a guy on crutches you sure can be intimidating," Jack whispered loudly.


	17. Chapter 17

**This is the last part guys! Hope you all enjoyed my story, and I hope you read some of my other stories (just check my profile, there are lots) but it's ok if you don't. Thanks for sticking with this until the end!**

The next few days Ianto was bored, he couldn't go on any of the missions and was stuck at the Hub all day. He couldn't even clean the place because he had the freaking crutches. So Ianto spent most of the day sitting in the main area watching everyone else move around or on the computers helping them while they were out on a mission.

"I'm heading home," Owen called out one day, Ianto still flinched at the sound of his voice.

"I'll come with you, Tosh you want to join?" Gwen asked,

"Sure, why not? Nothing too important going on anyway," Tosh followed the two out the door and left Jack at the computers.

"Hey Ianto, I- wait where'd you go?" Jack looked around in confusion when he didn't spot Ianto immediately.

"Over here," Ianto sat up and grabbed his crutches, "what did you want?" he asked as he made his way over to the Captain from the couch.

"Do you really need the crutches still?" Jack asked and Ianto looked down.

"Not really, I could move fine without them, it just helps the pain a bit." Ianto started to shrug but stopped when the wound in his shoulder spiked painfully.

"What do you remember from when you were shot? It's been a while so I thought your memory would've improved." Jack asked curiously.

"I can remember past Owen attacking me now," Ianto sat on one of the chairs by Jack, "I remember walking up the stairs and being the last in line and getting shot. I remember falling off the building but that's where it stops. Next thing I know I'm in the SUV and you're there, we talked about… something, and it goes blank again. Then I wake up and I'm on the table in the med center, I'm in casts and it's just you sitting on a chair by me. I freaked out because I couldn't remember getting shot, and then you said Owen's name and I completely panicked. I don't really remember what happened after that, just that I shouted a bunch of stuff and eventually went unconscious again. Then I wake up, still on the med table, but you explain what happened and then Gwen and Tosh are there and it's fine." Ianto finished.

"Ok, just wanted to make sure you remembered everything." Jack smiled,

"What do you remember from when you were shot?" Ianto asked,

"Not much," Jack lied,

"Jack, I just told you what I remember, you at least owe me the same thing." Jack looked at Ianto hesitantly before replying,

"Fine. So you know how when you take Retcon you don't remember what happened unless there you have a powerful mind and someone hints at what happened long enough, right?" Ianto nodded. "When you went on your rant about Owen, I started to remember, you said some things that reminded me of what really happened, and after you really said it I remembered." Ianto swallowed,

"So… you remember? In the ride back to base that night?" Ianto asked,

"Yes." Jack replied,

"Sorry," Ianto mumbled,

"Sorry? Why would you be sorry?" Ianto looked at Jack surprised, "I was the one who did it after all, I should be the one saying sorry,"

"I just mean-" Jack cut him off

"And to be honest, I don't mind." Ianto froze and looked at Jack.

"Wait… really?" He asked,

"Hell yeah. In fact I'm glad we finally got past our differences, you know?" Jack smiled and Ianto ducked his head, embarrassed,

"So you mean-" Just then the door burst open,

"Hey guys sorry, I left my keys here." Gwen rushed in and grabbed her keys, "I'll leave you two now," she exited but the moment was broken. Jack stood up and stretched,

"I'll be in my room, call me if you need me," Jack winked and Ianto smiled back before heading back to his own make shift room. Ianto knew the nightmares wouldn't come tonight.

**The end! Thanks for reading my story all the way until the end! :) I'm writing quite a few other stories as well so if you want to check those out, thanks!**


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